Envoy praises SL workers in Israel

The Sri Lankan Ambassador in Israel Donald Perera, together with senior representatives of the Israeli Agriculture Ministry visited several Israeli farms where Sri Lankan workers are employed.

The workers are part of a group consisting of 300 Sri Lankan agriculture workers who arrived in Israel over a month ago under a joint pilot project between the Governments of Israel and Sri Lanka.

The workers will stay in Israel for six months, after which they will return to their own farms in Sri Lanka and use the knowledge they gained in Israel. During their stay in Israel, the workers are entitled to a minimum monthly wage of $ 1000.

The Israel Ambassador to Sri Lanka Mark Sofer said: "The Lankan agricultural workers have proved their mettle and they are doing a good job. While they have displayed their skills they have also learned new technologies adopted in Israel, and once they return to Sri Lanka, they will implement them in their own farms."

Sofer said it is a win-win situation between the two countries in the agriculture field. Israeli Agriculture Minister Shalom Simhon will visit Sri Lanka next January to obtain first hand information on the agricultural sector in the island and to further agricultural cooperation between the two countries.